Online classes may appeal to jobless college grads
Job-searching college grads may find opportunities to study online
Armed with their degrees, college graduates from the Class of 2009 were ready to take on the world, as their commencement speakers undoubtedly advised them to.
Unfortunately, many were taking on a world in which the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics places the latest unemployment rate at 9.8 percent, and they frequently can't find a job in the field they studied for four years.
So with money tight, more college grads are heading where they can get bed and board, courtesy of Mom and Dad. In fact, the San Franscisco Chronicle recently reported there's been a steady uptick in the number of college graduates doing just that – 80 percent this year, compared to 67 percent surveyed in 2006, before the economy turned sour. Nearly 70 percent didn't have a job lined up after graduation.
Online classes may be an option for college grads
There may be some professional options available to college grads who didn't expect to find any in the comfort of their parents' homes. Trying to get a leg up in a competitive job force, they could try to expand their education through online courses for graduate degrees, professional certifications or new careers they hadn't considered as they prepared for their bachelor's degrees.
Many who planned on teaching careers, for instance, could turn to web sites that specialize in teaching degrees, including online graduate courses with credits given in partnership with various universities. The eight-week courses take an estimated six to eight hours each week, including online interaction with classmates.
As with most web-based courses, learning times for the online teaching degrees vary according to an individual's schedule, but usually weekly interaction is required.
There also is a wide-ranging selection of online master's degrees and online phd classes, in additional to professional development and certification programs.
The convenience of online training is appealing not only to job seekers, but for those who have taken a part-time job until a position in their field becomes available to them. Many recent college grads who have moved home this year are among the 9.2 million Americans who are working part-time only for economic reasons, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics this fall.
Conveniences and myths of online training
As the web site Distance-Education.org points out, online degree programs are for adults of any age and circumstance. "Learn where you live," the site advises, with no commuting expenses or scheduling problems.
Distance-Education.org provides considerable guidance about online education through a series of advise articles on its web site. One may be particularly appealing to someone who has just completed their college studies and isn't convinced that online courses are for them.
In her column on "myths" about online education, author Jennifer Williamson points out many pre-conceived notions that are commonly held, but increasingly untrue regarding the public's acceptance of web-based learning programs.
She writes that online courses are gaining widespread acceptance in partnership with traditional colleges – many of which sponsor their own online classes – as well as with employers. Web classes can be just as rigorous as those at brick-and-mortar schools, and the interaction with other students and instructors can be achieved through email, forums and chat groups.
"Many online schools – even those that only give classes online – are accredited by the same regional accreditors that approve most traditional colleges. And many traditional colleges give classes and sometimes whole degree programs online," according to Williamson.
However, she advises students to check an online provider's accreditation and the ability to transfer credits to a particular college before enrolling.
"Online education has grown up," Williamson writes.
